MORE INVESTORS DIVERSIFYING THROUGH FUNDS

More and more investors have diversified their portfolio and gained exposure to global markets through professionally managed funds, bucking the broad domestic market downturn during this prolonged pandemic.

BPI Asset Management and Trust Corp. (BPI AMTC), the wealth management arm of the Bank of the Philippine Islands, reported that its flagship global equity fund, BPI Invest Global Equity Fund-of-Funds, made one-year return of 15.29 percent as of November 2021, outperforming its benchmark by 0.54 percent (over three years) to 1.14 percent (over five years).

The fund provides access to select offshore funds that are managed by reputable global asset managers such as State Street Global Advisors, Wellington Management and Capital Group. Because of its risk-adjusted returns in the past five years, the CFA Society Philippines awarded this as “best managed fund” in the dollar equity category for the fifth consecutive year now.

Citing “resilience amid the headwinds that came with the pandemic,” BPI AMTC also named other top-performing funds in its basket in 2021: BPI Invest Philippine Infrastructure Equity Index Fund, BPI Invest US Dollar Short Term Fund and BPI Invest Money Market Fund.

“Investing in 2021 presented unique challenges. The world economy was earlier anticipated to be fully reopened by this year as the life-saving vaccines became available globally. Instead, the world faced two new COVID-19 virus variants, bringing back lockdowns and market volatility,” said Smith Chua, chief investment officer of BPI AMTC.

However, the investors who remained invested in diversified assets through these uncertain times saw their portfolio yield positive rewards, at a time when current market yields remained low, he said.

“Over the long term, this pandemic is expected to significantly change how we live and work. We are optimistic that people and companies will be able to adapt in order to make them more resilient,” he added.